Central Market is a great gourmet food store with a good (for Texas) craft beer section. They have a smattering of styles and brewers from around the world. Emphasis seems to be on US craft brewers over others. The total beer section consists of maybe 30 feet of shelf space and some stacked cases in front of the shelf. They have a decent amount of beer from Texas brewers, like Real Ale and St. Arnolds.

The prices are average or lower than average for San Antonio. They do occasional sales that can be significant. For instance, in October (I think it was) they did a Beer Month with 20% off sales over $25. They also did meet-the-brewer events and cooking classes on cooking with beer. The employees seem fairly knowledgeable on beer and were enthusiastic during the beer month events.

Central Market is a grocery store. I drink beer and that is pretty much it. I like this place because it is not a liquor store. Liquor stores have a totally different vibe than grocery stores and beer shops. When I am here, I can pick up nice specialty food items (produce, cheeses, breads, etc.), hot and cold foods, flowers, and even vitamins. I always wonder how long specialty food items have been sitting around at liquor stores. I feel like CM moves its products so you know they are always selling fresh foods. I also do not like buying food at a liquor store because of that boxy liquor smell. I think I made my point.

Let’s face it, you can go to three top notch beer/liquor stores and each one of them will have something unique that is not sold at the other two stores. That has to do with distribution, I guess. With that said, the selection is fantastic. If you park at the north entrance, it is easy to get in and out of the store (beer is in the back). The staff is knowledgeable. Their stuff is not overpriced, and they sometimes have amazing sales. It is centrally located so I do not have to go way out to 1604.

If you are stopping in town and staying downtown, then I recommend this place.

It's a grocery store, a fancy grocery store with a cafe and restaurant, but still a busy grocery store type of atmosphere. Which is fine. Just fine. Just not the easiest place to pop into for a sixer or couple bombers. This is a weekly at most (or monthly) type of beer shopping trip, unless you happen to live around the corner.

Haven't ever seen anyone working in the beer section, although there is usually someone in the wine isles helping someone. Not a big factor for me anyway. Obviously, due to the selection at this place, someone is paying attention and doing their job.

Selection is why this place deserves to be on the top of the list of SA beer stores in my opinion. They get good beer, rare beer, exciting new beers, etc... AND they actually put them on the shelf for people to buy! Was excited to see Saison Brett, Le Terroir, Aphrodite, and Jesterking/Mikkeller collabo all on the shelf at the same time, in San Antonio, Texas!

This is the other place that I buy beer on a regular bases. They are a little bit pricy, but now expensive. Their employees in the beer section are knowledgeable and very helpful. Suzanne is a BA member and occasionally updates us on what she receives. Their selection is not as expansive as Gabriel's, but they still have a lot of quality. They recently have been receiving a steady supply of Jester King, unlike most other places in San Antonio. I have been able to find many special release beers here and not at other locations due to the fact that Suzanne updates on the arrival of them. I would not have known about the arrival of the Abyss if she didn't send me a BM. If it was closer to where I lived it would probably be my primary beer shopping location. Luckily for me my girlfriend likes buying food from there and it is some what on the way home for after work, so I still go fairly regularly. If you don't see a beer on the shelf, then it is probably in the back, because she tends to keep special or rare beers in the back for regulars. For people staying downtown, this will probably be your best bet for finding some good bottles.

Central Market had a selection comparable to other Central Markets I've been to. They had a long wall of open coolers with a special section specifically for Texas products, which was cool.Picked up some Independence Austin Amber while I was there, which I was happy to find. They also had a good amount of Saint Arnold's Christmas Ale (as of 7/16).

Good selection worth checking out. Central Market isn't a beer store, but they had a pretty good selection, easily more than the Quarry Market Whole Foods Store.

Stopped in on a business trip after reading about this from the BA brethren. Central Market is a large grocery store with a pretty sold selection for a grocery store. The grocery stores in my part of Florida have a woeful selection of beer. Central Market has a nice selection. Head into the store all the way to the rear and you will see the cooler. You can make your own six pack. I saw a pretty good selection of Belgians and German beer. Also had Shiner, Full Sail, St. Arnold, DFH, Oskar Blues etc. Not too bad. I picked up a Boulevard Smokestack Series Chocolate Ale. Overall keeping in mind this is a grocery store it’s a good worthwhile stop. The food selection is over the top. If you want something to eat go grab it here. Amazing selection of prepared foods, salad bar, sandwiches etc. I grabbed a ridiculously good sandwich. Well worth a stop in my opinion.

This place is a lifesaver! I have searched all over San Antonio for the best beer store and and this is by far the one. They take the time to post here on Beer Advocate when they get something new in which is really helpful. The pricing is reasonable and the selection is the most vast for this area! Tons of American Craft brews, a nice selection of imports, and some local Texas beers that are hard to find in other states. This store is owned by HEB, but is a major step up from your average HEB not only in the beer selection, but also in quality food to pair with your beer.

Stopped by here earlier today while vacationing in San Antonio. This place is basically a grocery store with a decent selection of local, American craft and imports. Almost everything is in coolers with the exception of a few clearance six packs. Nice selectionnof Belgians, a few Germans and a great selection of local beers that aren't available to mr in Philly including, St. Arnld's, Real Ale, Shiner, Southern Star, New Belgium, Full Sail and Modus Hoperandi. They also had sme beers frm some other states like New Mexico. The biggest surprise was that they had stuff from Ska and Boulevard including several selections from the Smokestack Series. It's a bit out if the way if you are staying downtown but I would recommend this place to anyone looking for bottles.

The best place ive EVER come across in my search for beer retailers in SA. Definatly the best selection of craft beers your going to find in San Antonio.

Fairly long wall of Single bottles(large and small) with the best selection ive seen and an even longer wall of 6 packs that is really nice. Pretty much all my big favorite brands Avery, Great Divide, Chimay, St. Bernardus. I found a lot of beers that i had been dying to get!

Its a little out of my way going there but with the selection im going to be going there very often. As for prices FEW are overpriced but im not complaining, The rest of it is very reasonable and almost HALF the price on a couple of beers i was buying at other places.

Thats just the beer section, They have a huge wine section and the rest of the store I hear has a lot of really good stuff and good selections.

I didn't talk to any employees or ask any questions but i put a 4 for service because our cashier was nice.

This is probably the best place to get beer in san antonio. Great selection of singles and lots of belgiums. Six pack selection is pretty good too. Staff never really goes by the beer section, they tend to stay in the wine section. Everything is kept in coolers and they usually had a Texas beer on sale

Overall compared to other cities its not the best place, but in san antonio which has like the most limited beer stores out of the major texas cities, this is as good as it gets.

Perspective is an interesting thing, you know. This may very well be the best beer store in San Antonio, and yet, it doesn't really hold a candle to the really great beer stores I grew accustomed to in the greater Washington, DC area. But you take what you can get, and this is what I got right now.

First of all, I love Central Market. Yes, it's overpriced (food and drink). And yes, it's a hassle getting in and out in a reasonable amount of time (unless you're just running in for beer, that is). But I love it. Something about the place makes me happy. Who knows why.

The beer selection is good, not great. Maybe it's great for Texas, but that is kind of depressing. We need to start a revolution down here to import more beers - both American craft and foreign. But what they do have is okay. Solid, if unspectacular, American craft selection (standouts for me include Great Divide, Oskar Blues, DFH, Stone, and a few others). Good Texas beer selection (Texans are very proud about our own products). And a marginal, at best, selection of foreign imports. Seriously, stocking the shelves with German pilsners and British ales does not a foreign selection make. Oh, and there's plenty of Mexican beer too. Great.

The service there has always been okay. But once, my wife went in and asked the beer steward if they had the Oak-aged Yeti from Great Divide in, and he said he'd never heard of it. That right there is the kind of store this place is. They may know the beer they're selling, but they don't necessarily KNOW beer. You know what I mean?

Sometimes, the prices are a bit spendy, and sometimes they're about right. I rated this as "reasonable" only because I don't think the prices at Central Market are "unreasonable." They fluctuate with the craft beer market nationwide. No qualms with that.

Again, let me just say, I like this place. I get most of my beer here, in fact. But it pales in comparison to what it could be if only TX beer distributors brought in more beers. Until then, it will always be an average beer store in my eyes.

Also, it would be much cooler if they sold all their beers in singles. Most of the great beer stores do this. It makes great sense from a consumer's perspective, if you ask me.

Of the two places I stopped at to look for beer in San Antonio, this was the better of the two. Selection was decent, but they didn't have a huge array of singles available, and they didn't allow you to break existing 6 packs. This was a bit disappointing to me as I was hoping to snag a variety of locals to bring back with me, but instead I was only able to grab a few. Overall though the selection was decent, with a good selection of micros and imports. A nice selection of Belgians was available as well. Definitely worth a stop if you're in SA.